Store owner kills robber

Johannesburg - A Bloemfontein store owner shot and killed a suspected robber in his shop at the Emily Hobhouse Square shopping centre on Saturday, police said.Free State provincial police spokesperson Colonel Sam Makhele said four robbers started shooting at the shop owner in the Sentra mini supermarket in the shopping centre in Bayswater late Saturday afternoon."He fired back. One of the suspects approached the office firing and when he reached the door he was shot in the chest," said Makhele.When the three other men saw their accomplice being hit, they ran away."The fourth man also made his way outside and collapsed," said Makhele.ER24 spokesperson Derrick Banks said paramedics found the suspect dead on the scene. A woman who was pistol-whipped was also treated and taken to hospital with minor head injuries.Makhele said police were searching for the three suspected robbers."We are investigating a case of business robbery," he said.The shop owner was not arrested."He acted within his rights to protect himself," said Makhele.